WINDSOR — Unifor Local 444 is waiting for direction from the company on what to do with the operations at the Windsor Assembly Plant.
Many workers at the plant have expressed concerns about going to work during the COVID-19 pandemic and state of emergency in Ontario.
This worker, who didn't want to be identified, called AM800's the Morning Drive.
"I don't think they are doing enough by far, they are not taking any sort of temperature," he says. "It seems the social distancing is only for the management, not for the employee, we feel like petri dishes stuck in a tin can."
Speaking on AM800's the Dan MacDonald Show, Unifor Local 444 President Dave Cassidy admits this is a fluid situation.
"It is such a moving target," he says. "Don't know exactly where it is at, we are hearing different facilities closing down, different facilities closing down there, our number one goal obviously for us is the safety of our members."
He admits some workers have returned from March Break travels and aren't sure what to do whether to self-isolate or not.
He adds there are also a lot of questions about employment insurance.
Cassidy says FCA has given workers cleaning supplies to clean their work stations.
He points out an agreement between the UAW and Detroit Big 3 doesn't make a lot of sense either.
"In the United States and the UAW, I want to be very clear, this was nothing but a PR stunt," he says. "If they are going to go into rotating shifts and have one shift laid off this week, one the next week, so on and so forth, that does nothing to mitigate the issue."
Cassidy says there are a lot of questions, and few answers.
"If people don't feel safe, you can not refuse because of an if or a maybe, that's one of the problems," adds Cassidy. "I mean there has to be facts around it, the company has given them cleaning stuff to clean up the work stations."
Unifor and Canada's three biggest auto makers are teaming up to protect employees during the coronavirus crisis.
The union, FCA, Ford and General Motors have formed a joint task force to implement preventative actions at manufacturing and warehouse facilities.
Meawhile, Auto workers at the Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles factory in Sterling Heights will not have to report to work after a co-worker tested positive for COVID-19.
FCA announced that they are suspending production at the facility out of caution for the safety and welfare of other workers.
The company released a statement saying they are working with the UAW on plant operations after yesterday's announcement of partial-rotating plan shutdowns.
The Sterling Heights plant builds the RAM 1500 pickup truck that is one of FCA's biggest sellers.